Page 27 of Wild As Her

I need to face her sooner or later and tell her what I've done.

Chapter 8

Cami

Strangers by Kameron Marlowe, Ella Langley

Iget back from my morning ride and shower, rushing as usual because I need to get to the trailer. I gather up my stuff for town and grab the paperwork in the folder, determined to look all of it over and figure out all of this legal verbiage. I can figure this out, I tell myself. Last night, I got two pages in, and my eyes glazed over. I don't know any lawyers who can help me figure this out. And that offer to move the trailer out to the ranch is looking pretty good right about now. I would like to be able to bake at the Jessop Ranch. Watching Jack find a wife might be torture, though.

Since I have extra time, I head to the feed store to stock up on horse feed and dog food for Love. I’m in line when I notice Weston Jessop heading into Harvest & Honey. I haven't seen him for a while. We went to school together and he was always into sports and academics. We took a lot of AP classes together, and he was always nice.

He's also a lawyer. Maybe he could help me make sense of some of these papers.

I finish paying and stow all the bags in the back of my truck and throw my purse over my shoulder and head over to the deli. I head inside and scan the dining room until I see him at a booth by the window reading something on his phone.

I hesitantly walked up to his table, "Hi, Weston..."

"Cami," he asks, looking surprised to see me. "How are you?”

"It's been a while, but I was wondering if I could talk to you. About a legal matter," I add.

He motions for me to join him, "Sure. What's up?"

Weston is about a year younger than Jack, and they have a few similarities. Jack is more of a rugged and blue-collar cowboy, and Weston looks every bit like the lawyer that he is. Buttoned up, with a nice haircut and clean hands.

I bite my lip, nervously. I hate to bother him. But I'm lost here. I need help. I'm waving my white flag and hoping he'll help me.

"I need an attorney to explain some things to me," I admit.

"Okay..." he says, hesitantly.

"You see, the bank sold my ranch, and I have the paperwork here that my mom gave me, but I don't understand what's going to happen," I admit. "All this legal jargon I'm just not sure about."

He swallows. "Have you talked to Jack?"

I tilt my head. "Why would I talk to Jack?"

He shrugs. "I don't know. I just figured you were closer to him, and you'd ask him."

"Jack's not a lawyer," I add, confused.

Weston looks perplexed, and I realize that this is a mistake, and I shouldn’t have bothered him.

"You know what, never mind. I'm so sorry for bothering you,Weston. Coffee is on me," I add, looking down at his cup. I quickly lay down some money and slide out of the booth.

"Cami, wait…" Weston says, but it's too late. I'm already heading quickly towards the door.

"Have a good day," I call before I can embarrass myself anymore.

I shouldn't have bothered him. I walk down Main Street and stop when I see something familiar on display in a storefront. My grandpa's saddle sits in the window, for sale to anybody with enough cash to buy it. I peer into the window, and my heart breaks at the sight of the well-worn saddle that means more to me than anything. It’s not just a saddle to me; it’s a personal connection to my grandpa. I bite my lip to stop the sting of tears as I look at the price tag, and I sigh.

I understand why my mom sold everything she could. But I don't understand it at the same time. Why the saddle? Why doesn’t she care about any of this? Why doesn’t she care about me?

I head back to my truck and head to The Black Dog on my way home. I can grab some lunch before I head home to start baking for the night. And then I need to start packing and figure out where I’m going to go.

The door swings open to The Black Dog, and it's surprisingly busy after the lunch rush. I wave to Cash and take a seat in one of the back booths. I don’t feel like chatting with anyone today. I just need a quiet moment to think about everything.

I stare down at my hands, processing everything. Today really sucks.

---